Upon being denied the use of a name with a possessive pronoun like his, our, or her for his establishment, Navin Bir Basnet simply decided to name his establishment, ‘The Best Archery Pvt. Ltd’. Worked as a banker for 10 years in Nepal Investment Bank, he has now put his fingers in his own establishment, which is far more exciting than what he calls his previous ‘monotonous’ job.
The first ever archery center in Nepal, ‘The Best Archery’ was established on 22 November, 2014, at Jhamsikhel, Lalitpur. With the target to attract the tourists and arouse the interest for archery in students above 10 years, Mr. Basnet and his partner Oyngel Gurung, are convinced that this disciplined sport will soon be a huge trend among the valley inhabitants.
Over these past two years, though the firm is not explosively rising, the gradual interest people have shown in this sport is satisfactory. “The business is pretty good. We have more than 30 people as members of the club, while 5 to 6 among them are really turning it into a deep passion,” says Mr. Basnet. With the complete support from the Nepal Archery Association, Basnet assures that Nepali archers will surely bring some medals home from international grounds in the days to come.
“Nepal quite sure has a future in the field of archery. Out of the members that are in membership in our firm, I think some of them will soon be qualified to take part in international events. When groomed by my partner and the national archery player Oyngel Gurung, they will improve tremendously in the days to come,†says Navin. He himself has taken a beginner crash course as a coach in Thailand this year at the World Archery Federation Meet, and is now one of the proud World Archery Federation certified coach.
Talking about their further plans, Basnet shares, “We are relocating the Naxal branch to Sanepa but with some modifications.” He states that he plans to turn it into a 30-meter outdoor range, different from the commonly seen 16 or 18-meter indoor range in Jhamsikhel, as well as previously. He also said, “We are trying to import some better and newer equipment for indoor practice too, however it has been really challenging due to the VAT and other taxes imposed therein. We also can’t bring and store a lot of materials this early, while the business is still tentative. However, as a fun and stress relief activity, this is a sport that will soon come to focus in the eyes of many.”
Archery is a sport that is difficult to master. However, in the process a practitioner learns to calm his mind, focus and create firm body postures, which is really useful in any other field. No less beneficial than meditation, archery is also a single-person sport, so anyone can enjoy the sport freely and individually. Yet, there is the lack of recreational centers that can support archery.
“Monopoly is good for business, but not for development. I believe we need development in sports such as archery. So, compete for supremacy, not with cheaper services, but better ones,” shares Basnet upon being asked if he is afraid of other firms opening similar establishments. “What we usually see is that in the name of competition, people lessen the price of similar services and attract customers. Hence, I say, give better services than cheaper ones.â€
Presented By:Â Atul Bhattarai
